The Best Sales Advice From the Top Sales Masterminds Around the World

All salespeople have received at least one piece of awesome advice that sticks with them as they sell. It’s something that resonates with them, and opens their minds to new ways of consistently being more productive, helping more prospects, and closing more deals.

We’ve put together this post with quotes from the experts on what they think the most important nuggets of advice are, and how they can help your overall mindset and sales performance.

We've got you covered! If you want to change your sales mindset and improve your performance, get started by downloading our top tips guide.

Sell in Person

Especially when just starting out, you want to see people’s unfiltered reactions to your presentation. This allows you to adjust your presentation depending on what is working and what isn’t.

According to Wiley Cerilli, founder and previous CEO of SinglePlatform, he was out for months pitching in person to his prospects before he decided to move in-house and develop a finely-tuned sales script.

“It takes months and months of testing to come up with the right formula. We were out selling the product for four months before we even built the [script] just to see what was resonating.”

Don't Undervalue Your Product/Service

If people haven’t paid for something, they have no real reason to use it. As Cerilli puts it:

“Think about it. If you buy something expensive, like a gym membership, you’re going to use it because you feel obligated to yourself.”

Figuring out the best way to price your product is vital to your sales strategy. So test, test, test.

“Only through testing did we discover that we were able to sell more as we increased the price.”

According to Cerilli, the key is to make your product/service’s perceived value as high as possible, without scaring off your prospects.

Listen More Than You Talk

Don’t try and sell something when you don’t know what your prospects specific pain-points are. According to Jim Keenan, CEO of ASalesGuy.com, it’s not about you!

“It’s not about you. No one cares what you want. It’s about the customer; their issues, their goals, their problems and their business. They couldn’t give a damn about your quota, your product, your needs, your anything. It’s all about the client, and once you get that into your head, everything about selling changes”.

Adopt a "Buyer’s Mentality"

When you’re selling, put yourself in the shoes of the customer. What is the actual value they will get?

"It doesn't matter what you think you're selling that counts. It only matters what the client thinks they are buying. In other words, see the whole sales transaction through their eyes and match what you offer to their wants, lifestyle, and their view of the world”. Sean McPheat

“Never sell with the goal of getting the money, sell with the intention of solving the problem or making the prospect's pain go away”. Zhelinrentice Scott

“Know your customer. If you are able to see things from their perspective, their needs, objections, etc., then you will gain empathy and stand a fighting chance. If you don't, you'll come across as patronising and naive -- and almost certainly won't succeed”. Nick Goode

Ask Questions First

Set your prospects up for selling to themselves. People don’t want to be told what to do, they want to figure things out for themselves. Not to mention the more information you have on a prospect the better armed you are to make a killer pitch.

“Never make statements, always ask questions -- preferably questions you know the answer to. This leads clients to draw their own conclusions and sell themselves, as opposed to being sold. Even when you’re asked a question and you’re unsure why they asked, it’s better to clarify by saying, 'That's an interesting question; why is that important to you?' rather than diving in and flubbing the whole process”. Steve Farmer

Stay Upbeat

Your attitude during a sale is even more important than what you say. The best pitch sculpted over hundreds of meetings is worthless without the right outlook and attitude. Don’t let outside factors affect how you’re selling.

“No matter what kind of day you are having, always act like a ‘10’ with customers or on the sales floor. Remember, it’s about your customer's needs, not yours”. Linda Nickelsen

“Visualize success before you talk to prospects. Be confident and use your body language to emphasize your words”. Gary Sahota

“Remember the three P’s: Be patient, be persistent, and most of all, be pleasant!”. Annette Bonacker-Hess

Sell the Result, Not the Product

Your prospect doesn’t care that they have something with your name on it, they care that it did what you said it would. So don’t sell features, sell benefits. How will their lives be better with your product/service?

“Never sell with the goal of getting the money, sell with the intention of solving the problem or making the prospect's pain go away”. Zhelinrentice Scott

“The customer never wants your product. What they buy is always a means to another end: profits, prestige, time, and so on”. Jason Rekker

“Doug Macdonald, veteran sales manager for Mass Mutual, told me in 1977 that the goal was not to make a sale. The goal is to make a difference. And if I couldn’t make a positive difference for my customer then I shouldn’t make that sale to him or her”. Jim Cathcart

“People don’t buy Legos. They buy the ability to build the Millennium Falcon’. That came from Stephanie Buscemi. I try to help sales work with buyers to find out what their Millennium Falcon looks like, what happens when they get the Millenium Falcon, and what happens if they don’t”. Craig Rosenberg

“Sell the hole, not the drill". It was actually the CEO of Black & Decker (the maker of drills!) who said this in a presentation once. I quote it all the time. You aren’t going to be successful selling what your product does, but rather what it does for your customers. Sell outcomes, not tools”. Matt Heinz

Now, Put This Advice to Use

There you have it. You’ve heard from some of the best! These experts have the track records to prove that what they are saying works.

Take these bits of advice and apply them to your overall sales strategy to start improving your sales numbers.

About Molly DePasquale

Molly DePasquale is the Manager of Operations and Sales Training Strategist for DMTraining. She manages the day-to-day business and training operations while helping research and develop new training programs as well as refreshing signature programs to reflect the newest sales trends, technology, and best practices. Molly utilizes her wide-range of skills to create sales and marketing assets focused on delivering value to DMT’s clients. Molly has a passion for learning and leveraging new knowledge and experiences. Outside of DMTraining, Molly is a hard core Pittsburgh sports fan, enjoys staying active by running and golfing, and unwinds by reading and playing the piano.